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How to Make a Photo Ledge for your Home

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I’ve always loved the look of a photo ledge to place pictures and plants in the bedroom. I bought some from Ikea for our old condo, and never really got around to using it before the move. Now in the new place, the Ikea ones were too small. I wanted a ledge that made a statement when I walked in the room. I wanted to put as many photos and plants as I could on the ledge. I couldn’t find one I wanted to buy, so we got building.

I only had a couple of basic needs for the photo ledge:
  • It had to span across the back wall
  • It had to be wide enough to fit a 4” plant pots
  • Needed to be wide enough to allow frames to overlap, if I needed
  • I wanted to make it out of wood so that I could stain it too match my bed frame

​Here we go.

 
Supplies + Tool
  • 3/4” plywood – you can use any kind. I had leftover Aspen wood, so that’s what I used. You’ll need 3x pieces.
  • Wood Glue
  • Circular Saw or Table Saw
  • 16 Gauge Finishing Nailer
  • Orbital Sander
  • Clamps
  • Wood stain & sealer
  • Wood putty
  • Stud finder
  • 3” wood screw
  • Drill
 
 Steps
  • Step 1 // Plan and measure - Plan out the length you want for the ledge, the base width of the ledge and the height of the front edge. My 3 pieces were:
  • Base Piece: 96” long x 5¼” wide
  • Back Piece: 96” long x 3” wide
  • Front Edge: 96” long x 1¼” wide
  • Step 2 // Cut your plywood to size
  • Step 3 // Sand down your pieces using the orbital sander and a medium grit (120) sandpaper
  • Step 4 // Choose your stain & stain your pieces! This is my favourite part.
TIP

  • Take a scrap piece of plywood, same material as the wood you’re using for the photo ledge, sand it down, and test all the stain on it first. This way, you’ll able to see what the final product will look like before actually staining the photo ledge.
  • Remember to let the stain dry in between coats, apply at least 2 coats till the desired colour.
  • Add a protective polyurethane sealer to finish off the pieces. 
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Step 5 // Attach the bottom of the ledge and the 2 sides. 
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  • Run a small bead of wood glue along the 1 edge of the base and attach the back piece and clamp the 2 pieces.

  • Take your finishing nailer and shoot nails along the edge of the back piece. Unclamp.

  • Run a small bead of wood glue along the other edge of the base and attach the front ledge piece. Clamp the 3 pieces together.​

  • Take your finishing nailer and shoot nails along the edge of the front edge piece. Unclamp. 
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Step 6 // Take wood putty and fill in the small holes created by the finishing nailer. Take a hand sander and lightly sand the filled in areas and re-stain.  
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Step 7 // Hang your photo ledge! 

  • Locate and mark out the studs along the wall.
  • Take the photo ledge, place it against the wall, make sure it’s leveled, and screw in the photo ledge where you marked the stud.
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Step 8 // Decorate! 




​Article written and photos provided by homewithsil

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